Discussions of all things Mac, iPhone and iPad related. If you would like to ask a technical question email me at paultscott@gmail.com or follow me on Twitter @paulmacguyscott
The Mac Guy is an independent blog and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc.”

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Safari 4 Public Beta A First Look

I always get excited at the prospect of trying out new software. What new features or innovations are we getting this time to make our lives a little easier and a little more productive is the questions I ask myself as I install the new software and eagerly await my first opportunity to take it for a test drive.

Well, this time Apple has really outdone themselves with Safari 4 Public Beta. Everything we wanted in a browser and more. First the browser chrome is totally minimized so your focus is on the webpage not everything around it. You can now drag your tabs out of your browser and move them into a new window or collapse multiple windows into a single window with tabs. It just makes it easier to organize your work flow to whatever works best for you the user. Also to minimize the chrome the tabs have been moved out of their own area above the bookmark bar and given their own space at the top of the window itself.

The rendering speed in Java thanks to the Nitro engine makes this the hands down fastest browser I have ever used! I use Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Safari on a daily basis both on Windows and Mac. Now there is nothing that comes close to the speed of Safari it is like the whole Internet just got a Turbo Boost! Safari also sports a new predictive loading feature so your browser can start loading pages before you even ask for them making load times even shorter.

The visuals of the new browser are just amazing as well. When you grab the right edge of a tab and pull it off the Window you get a thumbnail of the tab and when you release it it blows up into a full window ready to use.

New Developer tools lets you view pages as different browser types, view site elements, Resources, Scripts, and profile websites to show you where the performance issues lie. I can't wait to spend some real time digging into these features. It really gives developers an opportunity to make sites better and faster.

On opening your browser you can choose to be presented with a grid of your top sites you visit. Small, medium, or large you choose the amount of updated pages you see in this panorama. Click a site and it flies into the full window and you are off and surfing.

Even browsing bookmarks was rethought with the addition of Cover Flow. On first access it is a little slow while the browser goes and gets a thumbnail of each page. After that it is like surfing Cover Flow in your iTunes Library, or your data in the Cover Flow View is Leopards Finder. It is just so well thought out. You can even search for bookmarks based on keywords. You don't have to remember the site name just type in some things you remember and let Safari do the rest. Even your browser history is available in Cover Flow to find things fast and easy.

So far in my attempts to stress test the browser I opened over 85 tabs in one window and moved between them while downloading files, pulling tabs out to their own window and pushing other back into the first window. If you have multiple windows open you can even click Window / Merge All Windows and all of your browser windows consolidate down to one Window with multiple tabs instantly.

Safari has just moved way ahead of the pack in the browser wars and it seems everyone in this space is leaving Microsoft in the dust. With this browser a completely standards compliant platform it is sure to pick up a huge market share in the future and will be the browser that Windows and Mac users alike are sure to fall in love with.